Best of 2013: Dundee softball title

There was no shortage of top sports stories to choose from in 2013 in the Monroe County Region.

Dundee won state championships in two sports, a Monroe High graduate earned a starting spot with the Minnesota Vikings, Jackson Lamb became the all-time Region basketball scorer leader among MHSAA teams and also was drafted in baseball, St. Mary Catholic Central reached the state basketball semifinals for the first time, Miranda Johnson won two state track titles, Gibraltar Carlson won its third straigtht state cheerleading title, Bedford won its first 11 games despite the tragic death of defensive back Colton Durbin, Marc Cisco retired after 47 seasons as Jefferson football coach and Bob Howard stepped down after 37 seasons as Summerfield’s only golf coach.

Here are the top area sports stories of the year as selected by The Monroe News sports staff:

1. Softball Champions

Before 2013, Dundee had never even won a softball Regional in school history.

All that changed this past spring when the Vikings went 44-1, shattered the school victory record, were ranked No. 1 in Divison 3 virtually all season and won their first state title.

Coach Mickey Moody’s Vikings had big sticks throughout the lineup but were led on the mound by the dynamic duo of Vanessa Ewing and Region Player of the Year Hannah Rachor.

The Vikings won their first 16 games, suffering their only loss 2-1 in eight innings to Onsted in the first game of a doubleheader. They never lost again, although not every win was easy. They knocked out second-ranked and two-time defending state champion Clinton in the Regional semifinals. They nipped Bronson 2-1 in the state quarterfinals and outslugged Allen Park Cabrini 11-6 in the semifinals.

Ewing pitched a shutout and hit a three-run home run in the ninth inning as Dundee shut down Unionville-Sebewaing 3-0 in the state championship game.

“The girls have been focused all year on just one thing,” Moody said afterward. “This is truly, truly icing on the cake.”

2. Audie Cole a starter

The former Monroe High quarterback became a linebacker at North Carolina State. He was last year’s story of the year after he was drafted by the Minnesota Vikings in the seventh round, returned two interceptions for touchdowns in an exhibition game and played in five games as a rookie.

This fall Cole took things up another notch. He became the starting middle linebacker on Nov. 24 with the absence of Erin Henderson. He recorded 13 tackles and a sack in his starting debut and performed well in a starting role the rest of the season until suffering an ankle injury Dec. 22 that sidelined him for the final game.

3. No more wait ‘til next year

Dundee’s wrestlers had come oh-so-close in recent attempts at state titles. The Vikings finished second in Division 3 in four of the previous five seasons.

Sean Keilitz’s upset win over a state qualifier helped coach Tim Roberts’ Vikings clinch a 35-26 win over Richmond for the state championship. It was the seventh state wrestling title in school history for Dundee which also won in 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 2001 and 2007.

The Viking had been ranked No. 1 in Division 3 all season and also would win middle and elementary school titles.

A week after winning state, Dundee dominated the Individual State Meet. Nine of its 10 wrestlers placed in the top eight including state champions John Marogen, Doug Rojem and Teddy Warren. Rojem was 54-1 for the season and shared Region Co-Wrestler of the Year honors with Bedford’s Brandon Sunday.

4. Marc Cisco retires

After 50 seasons of coaching football — including 47 at Jefferson — Marc Cisco decided it was time to go.

Cisco, 77, announced in April that he would not be returning for a 48th season as Bears head coach. He also coached Jefferson track and field for 40 seasons.

The Hall of Fame coach led Jefferson’s football team to the state championship in 1994, an undefeated season in 1983 and nine playoff appearances. He finished with an overall record of 241-192 at Jefferson and the football field was renamed Marc Cisco Alumni Field in 1994.

5. Carlson cheer champs

Gibraltar Carlson’s competitive cheerleading team had won back-to-back state championships under coach Danielle Jokela.

But the Marauders finished second to Dearborn Divine Child in the Division 2 Regional. They lost the heart of their team in the process when four-year varsity starter Annie Hajec tore her Achilles’ tendon.

Forced to compete at state without Hajec, Carlson had the best overall score of any school in any division and beat out runner-up Divine Child by 10 points. It was their fifth state title in six years and the sixth overall for Carlson.

“The girls decided to put it all together and win it for Annie who has put her heart into this team for four years,” Jokela said.

6. Jackson Lamb

Jackson Lamb already had become Bedford’s all-time basketball scoring leader as a junior. As a senior, he became the all-time leader among all scorers among Michigan High School Athletic Association teams.

He averaged 26.0 points and 10.9 rebounds while leading the Mules to their first league title in school history. He finished his career with 1,901 points and 889 rebounds and repeated as Class A All-State and Region Player of the Year.

But Lamb’s future is in baseball. He already had committed to the University of Michigan before his junior year. Despite annoucing that he would not turn pro, the pitcher/outfielder still was drafted in the 20th round by the Texas Rangers.

Lamb once again was named Region Baseball Player of the Year. He capped his Mule career by batting .511 with 34 RBI, 40 runs, 15 steals, an 8-0 pitching record, a 1.14 ERA and 72 strikeouts in 42 innings. His career pitching record was 22-5 while batting .498 with 19 home runs. He was named 2013 Mr. Baseball in Michigan, was state Gatorade Baseball Player of the Year and crushed a 410-foot triple in the East/West All-Star Baseball Classic at Comerica Park.

7. Victory in tragedy

Bedford’s football team was 8-0 and headed for an undefeated regular season when tragedy truck. Senior Colton Durbin was critically injured Oct. 23 when his car struck the back of a garbage truck. He died the next day.

Durbin was a defensive back whose inspired play was one of the reasons the Mules were undefeated. His fumble recovery was a key play as Bedford defeated rival Saline and he returned a blocked punt for a touchdown against Utica Henry Ford.

Coach Jeff Wood’s Mules were scheduled to close out the regular season a day after his passing and his teammates voted to go ahead with the game in Colton’s honor. They crushed Jefferson 49-0 to finish 9-0. They would go on to win two playoffs games before suffering a heartbreaking 34-33 loss to Detroit Catholic Central on a late touchdown.

8. Johnson wins two

Whiteford junior Miranda Johnson won the state long jump title as a sophomore. She only got better during her junior season and was the No. 1 seed in the 100, 200 and long jump heading into the Division 4 state meet.

Johnson did not disappoint. She won the long jump in a state-meet-record 18-2 1/2. She also was state champion in the 200 in :25.94 and just missed out on the 100 title, finishing second. She led Whiteford to its best-ever sixth place team finish at state.

This fall she also was a standout on a Whiteford volleyball team that set a school record for victories and won a Regional crown.

9. Falcons go far

St. Mary Catholic Central already had a great season going when it won its second Regional basketball title in three seasons. But the Falcons took things even higher this season under coach Randy Windham, advancing to the state semifinals for the first time in school history.

Senior Kevin Woodson scored a career-high 29 points as the Falcons won their District final. Four days later he poured in a career-high 34 points in a Regional semifinal win. SMCC won its Regional 51-40 over Clinton. Woodson scored 33 as the Falcons beat Schoolcraft 71-62 in the Class C state semifinals. They finally met their match at the Breslin Center, falling to Flint Beecher 73-55 in the semifinals.

SMCC finished 23-3 and broke the school victory record. Woodson would average 19.4 points while sophomore point guard Bryce Windham led the Region with an average of 5.9 assists per game.

10. Howard retires

Bob Howard wasn’t just Summerfield’s golf coach. He was the only golf coach the Bulldogs ever had.

He became Summerfield’s first boys coach in 1977 and started the girls team in 1992. Along the way he was named Michigan Interscholastic Golf Coach of the Year six times and was inducted into the Michigan Golf Coaches Hall of Fame in 2002.

He suffered a near-fatal stroke four years ago but returned to coach, finally deciding to step down this summer. Howard, 73, finished with 1,024 boys wins, the most by any coach in Division 4 history.

Monroe Events
click to expand

About

We're an afternoon daily with morning weekend editions. Monroe County is our specialty. The Monroe News is your only source for local news, high school sports, photos, events, crime and more in Monroe County, MI.